DOCTOR'S VIEW ARCHIVE

Antidepressant Action Requires New Neurons

Background: The antidepressant medications available today include the
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as fluoxetine (Prozac)
which figures into this research. The hippocampus is part of the olfactory
cortex, that part of the cerebral cortex essential to the sense of smell, and is
known to help regulate emotion and memory. The hippocampus is so-called because
its shape suggests that of a seahorse. From the Greek hippos (horse) + kampos (a
sea monster).

The Gist: "We have known that antidepressants influence the birth of
neurons in the hippocampus. Now it appears that this effect may be important for
the clinical response (to antidepressants)." (Dr. Thomas Insel, Director of
the National Institute of Mental Health)

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Blocking the formation of neurons in the hippocampus blocks the behavioral
effects of antidepressants
in mice, say researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Their finding lends new credence to the proposed role of such neurogenesis in lifting mood. It
also helps to explain why antidepressants typically take a few weeks to work,
note Rene Hen, Ph.D., Columbia University, and colleagues, who
report on their study in the August 8th Science.